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Truth, Reconciliation & Equity


In 2008, the Canadian government apologized to former students of Indian Residential Schools for the abuses that they endured and from which generations continue to suffer. In 2010, the first public event of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was held in Winnipeg, and after years of stalling, Canada quietly announced its endorsement of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Together, these moments should mark a turning point in the lives of Indigenous peoples in Canada.

"For the mistakes of the past, Canadians need to hear and tell the truth. With the promise of reconciliation, Canadians need to end the inequities of the present."

Truth and Reconciliation Commission: Your Participation is Needed

What Can I Do?

'Put Yourself in the Picture'
Public Witness Campaign

A skit for you to perform!

Truth, Reconciliation & Equity Campaign Flyer

Truth, Reconciliation & Equity Workshop & Ecumenical Worship Service

Truth, Reconciliation
& Equity Video



Roll with the Declaration!

In June 2011, thousands of people from all walks of life created more than 300 banners stating their commitment to the UN Declaration. Joined together in one huge banner, they were carried through the streets of Ottawa as a country’s witness to its government: Make this endorsement real. Fix current inequities. Make the UN Declaration a road map to a better future.


Yet First Nations, Inuit and Métis people in Canada continue to face serious inequities, often borne by the most vulnerable.

First Nations schools on reserves receive at least $2,000 less per student than non-Indigenous schools. Only 41 per cent of students on reserves graduate, compared to 77 per cent in the rest of Canada. First Nations children are 6 to 8 times more likely than others to be placed in foster care, due in part to insufficient child welfare funding on reserves.

These inequities contribute to terrifying suicide rates for young Indigenous people in Canada. The reality is that inequity can mean the difference between life and death.

Inequities related to children are only some of the gaps impacting Indigenous peoples in Canada. Others include housing, water, health, and income. These current inequities are as much a national shame as are the injustices of the past.

Join KAIROS as we work towards equity for Indigenous people in Canada. All of us share in the responsibility for making this an equitable country. For the mistakes of the past, Canadians need to hear and tell the truth. With the promise of reconciliation, Canadians need to end the inequities of the present. The integrity of Canada is at stake—it matters to all of us. This is the KAIROS campaign for 2011–12.

KAIROS can help to organize educational workshops on Indigenous Rights in your community.
Please contact us at workshops@kairoscanada.org!

For orders of resource material please contact KAIROS at:
orders@kairoscanada.org, 1-877-403-8933 x 221




























TRUTH, RECONCILIATION & EQUITY NEWS

March 21, 2012 By
4 directions

In 1966, to commemorate the killing by police of peaceful anti-apartheid demonstrators in South Africa, and to promote an end to racism in all its forms, the United Nations designated March 21 as the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Last week, the UN criticized Canada for not doing enough to end discrimination against Indigenous Peoples. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), that includes human rights experts from around the world, cited numerous concerns about the treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada. These include violence against Indigenous women; the failure to respect land and Treaty rights; inadequate housing; a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dignity & Rights, Feature 2, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP
February 6, 2012 By
Logo - Chiefs Of Ontario

"Dear Committee Member: I am writing to demonstrate my support to both the delegation of Indigenous youth ambassadors from Canada travelling to Geneva this week, and to their request that a Special Rapporteur be appointed to address ongoing human rights violations against Indigenous children in Canada based on discriminatory state practices...." … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dignity & Rights, Feature 2, Honouring the Children, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP Tagged With: , ,
February 1, 2012 By
UNICEF Logo

For Immediate Release 1 February 2012 (Toronto)  Six Indigenous youth ambassadors from across Canada will meet with the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) next week to urge to the UNCRC to pressure Canada to end inequities faced by First Nations children. The youth will outline their concerns at a news conference in Toronto tomorrow held by the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada (Caring Society) in advance of their departure for Geneva.  The news conference is being hosted by the Office of the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth in Ontario. The youth ambassadors will explain to the UNCRC how Canada discriminates … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dignity & Rights, Feature 2, Indigenous Rights, Media Room, The Land Our Life, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP
December 13, 2011 By
DR-IR-12-13-WinterCelebrationBannerPresentation

L to R: Quilter Beulah Paugh, Qualicum Band Councillor Donna Kennedy, Qualicum Band Councillor Darlene Wells, Chief Patricia Cassidy, designer Norma Emerson, and Parksville/Qualicum KAIROS Chair Hans Kratz. In the midst of a few hundred school children, parents, and supporters, Parksville/Qualicum KAIROS presented a handcrafted banner to Qualicum First Nation. The banner was created locally and was featured in KAIROS’ “Roll with the Declaration” event, which gathered banners from across Canada and joined them together in Ottawa as public witness calling on the Government of Canada to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). Over 300 … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Feature 1, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity
December 8, 2011 By
DR-IR-11-12-AttawapiskatJointStatement

Canada must meet its human rights obligations. Indigenous peoples and individuals have the right to enjoy the same standard of living and access to government services that are enjoyed by other people in Canada. They have the right to live and bring up their families on their own lands and territories. Our organizations, Canadian human rights and faith-­‐based groups, are deeply concerned that these basic principles are repeatedly cast in doubt. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Action for Indigenous Rights, Feature 1, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP Tagged With: , , ,
December 2, 2011 By
Attawapiskat Logo

1 December 2011 KAIROS Urgent Action Background information As of November 30, federal leaders and the Red Cross have now visited the northern Ontario Cree community of Attawapiskat, which is a step forward. The Red Cross is flying in emergency supplies like winter sleeping bags. However, no emergency or long term funding for housing has been committed by either the provincial or federal government despite the onset of winter, and the latest word from the federal government is very troubling. The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs' November 30 announcement that he is putting the community's finances under the control of a government appointed third-party manager deflects attention from … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Action for Indigenous Rights, Dignity & Rights, Feature 2, Indigenous Rights, The Land Our Life, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP Tagged With: , , ,
November 25, 2011 By

Dr. Elizabeth Blackmore, one of 15 family doctors for the James Bay coast, said at a recent press conference on Attawapiskat, “I often have to remind myself that I am still working in the province of Ontario... From a medical perspective, we see this as an emergency and that something has to be done.” She said the overcrowding and lack of hygiene present in the community lead to increased infectious diseases, scabies, lice, respiratory problems and acute depression. Substance abuse and suicide often follow. The Member of Parliament for the area, Charlie Angus, writes: “Two weeks ago I travelled to this community on the James Bay coast to see why conditions had become so extreme that … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Action for Indigenous Rights, Indigenous Rights, Take Action, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, Urgent Actions Tagged With: ,
November 7, 2011 By
TA-TRE-TREVideo1

KAIROS' opening video for the Truth, Reconciliation & Equity Campaign, focusing on the Roll with the Declaration action on June 20 in Ottawa. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Feature 2, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP
October 31, 2011 By
TA-TRE-11-10-ELCtoPM

The Reverend Susan C. Johnson, National Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, has at the request of the ELCIC National Convention written a letter to Prime Minister Harper encouraging the Canadian government “to fully and effectively implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and to provide the Parliament of Canada with regular reports on how the Government will reform laws and policies in order to meet the Declaration’s standards.”  In her letter, Bishop Johnson notes “the word ‘treaty’ is a synonym for the word ‘covenant.’ There are moral and spiritual dimensions to making and keeping covenants.” … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Feature 1, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, UNDRIP
October 24, 2011 By
DR-IR-11-10-HonouringChildren-small

  For the full version of “Honoring the Children” click here >> Executive Summary of “Honouring the Children” submitted by First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada and KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives October 2011 “For far too long the hopes and aspirations of indigenous peoples have been ignored . . .” Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan The Interim Report of the Canadian Government’s Standing Committee on the Status of Women states: “[C]hildren often come into the care of child and family services not for abuse, but rather because their families are unable to provide the necessities of life.” This inability is due … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dignity & Rights, Feature 2, Indigenous Rights, Truth, Reconciliation & Equity, Women of Courage
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